The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1887-12-27
SOME WASHINGTON TOPICS.
Prospects Of BIair's Famous Bill In
the Senate and House.

WASHINGTON, Dec 26.-The friends of the
Blair educational bill are confident that 1t
will pass the Senate before the 1st of Febru-
airy by large majority. They are only con-
cerned as to what will be done with it in the
House. They have made a partial canvass
ON the lines of the canvass they made last
year, continued so as to cover the new men,
bers. They say the bill has undoubtedly a
large majority in the House II the bill can
only be brought sQuarely before it, They
fear, however, adverse action by the commit
tee on education like that of last year, which
would prevent the bill from coming before
the House. For this reason they are trying
to persuade Speaker Carlisle to appoint a
committee favorable to the bill. The Speaker
is not disposed to do so. He will probably
appoint Mr. Gambler of Georgia chairman OF
the new committee He was member OF
the last committee and opposed the Blair
low-members are likely to be Of the same
way of thinking. The Speaker does not
think the Blair bill furnishes proper way
of reducing the surplus, and, what Is
more important, the President agrees
with him. Even if the bill should pass both
houses, the President would, in all probabili-
ty, refuse to give it his approval, and it would
not command the two-thirds vote of both
houses to pass it over the veto.
Our Mineral Resources.
The United States Geological Survey, Maj.
J. w. Powell, director, has issued the statis-
ties of the production of minerals during
1886, in volume entitled Mineral Resources
of the United States, 1886" The total value
of the mineral products, taken as nearly as
possible at the points Of production, was
more than $465, 200, 900, the largest mineral
production yet recorded in any country. In
1885 the value was about S42O0O0,000. Many
substances shared in this increase, but par
ticularly iron and steel, which alone showed
an increase of S5O,0O0,0O0. In 1885 bitumin-
GUS coal was the most valuable natural pro-
duct, but in 1886 it was passed by pig iron,
which had higher total value than silver
and gold combined.
Wonderful progress 10 shown in the use OF
natural gas, the consumption being more than
double that of 1885, and twenty times that OF
the coal displaced by natural gas In 1886 was
| more than S9SOOOO0. This slightly less than
half the value of the petroleum. The report
| is made especially valuable by the work OF
many prominent authorities on mineral sta
| tistics.
Among Departments Expenditures
Not very much money is paid out by the
| Department of State for its own contingent
expenses and those Of foreign missions. The
total for the last fiscal year was only S11, ,S2S.-
10, and special report which has just been
made to Congress gives the items making up
this total. The heaviest item was for tele-
grams and cablegrams, which amounted to
S2,92l.5S. Expressage cost S65.75, and $500. II
was paid for hay, straw, horse feed, harness
and repairs to wagons and carriages, togeth.
er with 5000 for rent of stable, while S34 u
was paid for carriage hire and $50 for cal
tickets. The department burned $24.3t
worth of matches, and used an even S1(
worth of insect powder, while $44.40 was
| paid for camphor, oil and sponges. SOAP
| cost Sl759 and q nail brush 20 cents. Tow
! els cost S13S.96. and for washing them S12I
| was paid. Twenty dollars went for tumblers
| So for gloves, and S154 for care of depart
| ment clocks. The rent OF telephones amount
ed to $342. and electric supplies cost $612 25
Photographs, frames and the vanishing o.
pictures cost 1.60 and 500 worth of stamps
| were used. Flags cost $3.50, and SILL was
| paid for s'silk taste" For newspapers an(
subscriptions the department paid S95l.10
Mr.. Mannins's Funeral.
The President, Secretaries Bayard, Fair
child and Lamar, Postmaster General Villas
Attorney General Garland and Col. Lamon